This year Rich and I are celebrating our 25th Wedding Anniversary! We decided we should go away together to celebrate, so we chose Hawaii!!! We realized that we shouldn't wait until our actual anniversary to go, because it's not until August. We need sunshine now, in February!
So we got everything booked, made the preparations for leaving our kids at home, dug out the summer clothes, packed up and left on February 17, 2014.
Our first flight took us to the Vancouver airport (where I got to be one of the lucky random people who got a pat-down search in Security), and then we headed out over the Pacific to O'ahu. It was getting dark as we left so I really couldn't see all that water below me, which I liked! They told us we'd have headwinds and it would probably take longer than the six hours they'd planned for. It took 7 hours of one of the bumpiest rides I'd ever been on. The turbulence was awful and we had to have our seatbelts on for most of the trip. We did get to sleep a bit though, since we were arriving at 2:30am our time and we were pretty tired. We arrived and our shuttle was there to meet us with shell necklaces and take us to our hotel. It was so nice as we were walking off the plane to feel the warmth and humidity in the air! The first thing I noticed was that the airport had no doors - it was all open to the outside. I guess that when you don't need to keep out the cold, you don't need doors! It was raining in the middle of the night when we arrived, and that was the only rain we saw during our whole trip.
This is the balcony view from our first hotel, looking inland over a pretty canal that often had boats going down it, and people strolling beside it. We were on the 9th floor.
Our first morning we woke up at 8:00am. Ate at the breakfast buffet in our hotel and then went to explore the famous and very busy Waikiki Beach.
Playing in the ocean for the first time! It looks like it would be cool out with the sky looking like that, but it was so nice out - perfect temperatures. And no hot sun to burn our poor white skin on that first day!
There were lots of people (but it wasn't overly crowded) on the beach and in the water. Surfers and wanna be surfers, swimmers and boats all sharing the water together. Rich said the water was warm but it felt pretty cold to me when the first wave washed over my foot. That's the famous Diamond Head crater on the right.
This picture is to show how the humidity made my hair curl up and feel so nice!!!
We walked along the beach for a long way and then explored the beach front stores. We realized we were getting tired of walking, and actually just plain getting tired. So we went back to the hotel and both napped for over 4 hours. Guess we were a little jet-lagged. Evening hit and we went out exploring again to find a place to have super, eventually deciding on Chilis. It was fun to walk around at night - the city really comes to life and they have lit flame torches everywhere, especially along the beach. There were people performing on the streets, and people living on the streets and sleeping right there on the sidewalks. This is such a fun place to be because everyone is happy! Most people are there on vacation, and the regulars are all there to serve the tourists. And I was impressed with the modesty - we really only saw bathing suits on the beach and not walking around on the streets, even though they're right beside the beach. Mahala O'ahu! Oh, and we noticed right away that that say aloha and mahala a lot!!!
Our second day we booked a Circle Island Tour through the Polynesian Cultural Center. We thought this would be a great way to see lots of sights and then we could go back later to the things that interested us the most. The bus picked us up at our hotel at 8:00am and off we went with a bunch of other tourists.
The bus stopped at various places where we could explore and take pictures. This picture is the ocean just below Diamond Head.
That's Hanauma Bay - a favourite place for snorkelers and scuba divers because it's an underwater ancient volcanic crater. Our tour guide pointed out the brush covered landscape there behind Rich that looks like a sleeping dragon.
Hanauma Bay was the first time we saw chickens!!! Our guide said that a long time ago there was chicken farm on the north shore. A cyclone came and blew all those chickens up into the stratesphere. A week later they all started coming back down and landed all over the island - and to this day there are still chickens all over O'ahu.
The Halona Blowhole - it wasn't blowing very much because the waves weren't very big, but we still got the idea. The hole is to the right of that stick thing - it looks like steam coming out a a hole in the ground when big waves hit.
The colour of the water was so beautiful! That's Manana (Rabbit) Island out there - I believe our guide said it's a bird sanctuary now and you're not allowed to go out there. Magnum PI lives just up the road from here. The road is called the Kalanianaole Hwy. Interesting fact: the Hawaiin alphabet only has about 12 letters in it - A E H I K L M N O P U W - which is why there are so many street names that start with K and why it was so confusing to me because they all look and sound the same!
Amazing view of the island and ocean from the Pali Lookout. This is the site of a gruesome battle where thousands of warriors were pushed off the cliff, the battle which determined the fate of Hawaii.
Pali lookout - this tree's roots looked like strips of bacon all curled up together. A bunch of tourists were looking at this animal, wondering what exotic Hawaiin species it was. Then it turned around and it was just a regular cat! So we called it a Hawaiin Mountain Cat.
And there were chickens at the Pali Lookout too!
It's the Dole Pineapple Plantation! We only got a few minutes here as our tour bus was running behind schedule. Just enough time for Rich to get some pineapple ice-cream . . .
. . . and for me to climb inside a pineapple!
Here's how a pineapple grows - not the way I would have imagined it! Notice the baby pineapple in the top left.
Sunset Beach on the North Shore - our first glimpse of the world famous waves! So impressive!!!
We were driving along and saw windmills and it felt like home - except it was warm!!!
We got to the Polynesian Cultural Center and they gave us these nut leis and we had our lunch luau at the Island Buffet. Our tour guides name was Leon and he was a Moari from NZ attending BYU-H. He was great and lived an hour from my hometown in NZ.
Rich and I sitting beside the water, waiting for the Rainbows of Paradise canoe pageant. Each of the six settlements of Polynesia perform on canoes.
Aotearoa (Land of the Long White Cloud aka New Zealand). Traditional costumes in non-traditional colours - it was a rainbow parade.
Coconut tree! I have always loved coconut, and after seeing the Samoan show and how coconuts really were the staff of life for them, I love them even more! They even used them to start fire! And it was amazing to see how quickly this Samoan guy could climb the tree. If conditions are right, he'll jump from tree to tree, but he didn't for us.
This is Tongan spear throwing - they're just sticks with wittled ends. They use these to settle arguments. Whoever throws their spear closest to the hoop on the ground with the end sticking in the ground, wins the argument.
Look at all their expressions as they stare at my throw with wonder and awe! It was the best throw of all the ladies - didn't land in the hoop but was very close.
And now they're watching Rich's spear. By the way, I won!!!
We didn't have time to visit all the villages - could easily have spent another day there. The last one we visited was Aotearoa - shocker, I know!
They had performances in their long house - singing, twirling the poi balls, and of course, the Haka. I grabbed this Maori for a picture while the chief looks on in the background.
The New Zealand picture booth.
Then it was time for the Ali'i Luau. We all got a fresh flower leis and sat at our table just in time to watch them pull the pig out of the pit.
We had beautiful Polynesian entertainment all through dinner and we were sitting pretty close to the stage. Actually, later on in the show, they asked for all couples who were there celebrating anniversaries to come to the stage. There were alot (about 20 couples) and we all got to dance on stage to a nice slow Hawaiin song.
We tried all the food - like ono ahi poke and freshly pounded poi. Some was great and some was, shall we say, more of an aquired taste. But the buns were fun! We took the cloth off the bun basket and . . .
. . . purple buns! They were made with poi too but tasted just like normal bread.
Our evening ended with the show HA: Breath of Life. It was an amazing show, about the life of Mana, and featuring all the different cultures. They sure did some amazing things with fire!!! It really was an incredible show, with another amazing Haka. And that was the end of a fabulous day! The bus took all us weary tourists back to our hotels.
We loved the PCC!!!
The next day we got to be lazy! Channel surfing (the only surfing we did in Hawaii!) found us the Olympic women's hockey final. So we got to watch Canada win the gold in overtime on USA TV.
This was the day we got the most sun. This pool in our first hotel was my favourite. I even found some little lizards in that island garden. And in Hawaii, I didn't need to go in the hot tub to warm up! I loved feeling warm. Everytime I'd go to open our balcony door, I'd brace myself for a blast of cold air. But the blast was always warm air. I got used to it by the end but it was so nice. I found it ironic that our first hotel actually had heated toilet seats. That's not something you really need in Hawaii!
After swimming we wandered around again in the evening and found the Cheesecake Factory for supper. The food here was so good - no wonder there were always huge line-ups!
Feb 22 was the day to switch hotels. We dropped our luggage off at the new place and took a city bus to Pearl Harbour. That was a long ride on a bus with all the stops and starts. But we were in no rush and it was fun to watch the people and see all the sights of downtown Honolulu.
The white building in the water on the right is the Arizona Memorial, with the Battleship USS Missouri behind it.
We arrived at Pearl Harbour too late in the day to get the tickets for the Arizona Memorial, so we took our chances and waited in the Stand-by lineup. Got in first time - yay! First we watched about a 20 minute movie about Pearl Harbour. Then we went to the dock and climbed into this boat that took us out to the memorial.
The memorial was beautiful and a very reverent place. Everyone was most respectful. The memorial spans across the sunken battleship so you're looking down on the ship. The white buoy out in the water shows where the end of the ship is. Those two things showing above water were something to do with guns.
The other side - again, the buoy in the water shows where the front of the ship is. This is the smoke stack. It stuck out higher than this in the water, but they cut the top part off.
The wall of names of all those who died.
I zoomed in to show more detail.
That's the submarine USS Bowfin SS-287 behind me. It "served with great distinction" and is now a museum.
We toured the other museums there at Pearl Harbour. Pearl Harbour was a solemn yet fascinating place - I'm glad we took the time to go there.
Then we checked into our next hotel room. This one had my favourite room of the three hotels we stayed in. The balcony is behind those shutters and this was our view . . .
23rd Floor
And a sunset view!!!
Saturday was the day we rented a car. On our journey to Laie, we drove through the Valley of Temples Memorial Park.
This is the Byodo-In Temple - a non-practicing Buddhist Temple. It was built in 1968 to commemorate the 100 year anniversary of the first Japanese immigrating to Hawaii.
The hillside was covered in these memorials. Apparently there are peacocks roaming through here too, but we didn't see any. It was a beautiful place.
Me, our little rental car and Chinaman's Hat. Apparently you can walk out to the island, but we were dressed to attend the temple so chose not to. It's also shark breeding ground at certain times of the year.
We were able to attend a session in the beautiful Laie Hawaii Temple.
Now the temple is in front of us and you can see the road, heading straight to the ocean.
We left Laie and headed to the North Shore. We drove slowly through all the beach area - there are cars every where, and the ocean waves are so captivating that you just want to stare at them. We found Ted's Bakery and had a delicious lunch there, including the chocolate coconut pie.
I wanted to see the botanical gardens in Waimea Valley, so we headed there.
And we found a chicken! As we were driving, we actually saw a chicken crossing the road. I rolled down my window and asked her why she was crossing the road - but now I can't remember what she said!
I found this cute little lizard too!
We followed a road to the Waimea Falls - but there were little pathways off it so you could explore the vegetation. There were some pretty amazing plants. And it was winter in Hawaii so they weren't even at their best. My favourite was a vine that went straight up a tree - but all the leaves of this vine were completely flat against the tree trunk, protecting the stem. It looked like someone had glued leaves to a tree trunk, one on top of the other, all the way up the tree.
And we made it to the Falls! Notice the little bodies swimming in the water at the base of the falls. We were planning to go wading at least, but there were warnings about stuff in the water so we just decided to stay out. It was pretty brown too.
Rich was fascinated with the hibiscus labels and was saying "hibiscus" for half the hike. Guess it's a Studio C thing or something . . .
This tree has pretty unique roots. And that hut - see the rock foundation? Well it was like that inside the hut too and was very hard to walk on and would have been impossible to sweep!
This little shelter was used for smoking fish.
Notice my lovely footwear. These are the swim shoes I searched forever for before we left and finally found them under the bathroom sink in the camper. They are the most comfy shoes and were perfect for the hike and possible wading at the Falls, that didn't happen.
We left the Waimea Valley and picked a spot on a North Shore beach. I think our location was determined by the first place we could find a parking spot.
These waves were just fantastic - so fascinating to watch. We both waded here where Richie is (got it on video) and we both got wet by waves that took us by surprise. The water is so strong. There was one lone surfer out there. The sand on this beach was really coarse. It actually was little stones - so it was really easy to brush off because it was so big. Didn't feel very good inside the swim shoes though!
Rich went swimming on the other side of this little inlet because that's where the other swimmers were. It was pretty much exactly like a wave pool! He sure enjoyed the waves, and I enjoyed watching him. Now we all know that sea water is salty, but Rich was really unprepared for just how salty it was. He came rushing in saying "I need a drink of water!" and was drinking lots of water all night to get rid of that salty taste.
After playing around in the water, and leaving without having our car broken into (apparently that's common on the North Shore), we travelled back to Laie to watch the BYU-Hawaii Seasiders play basketball against Fresno Pacific. BYU girls lost in double overtime - great game! Boys won - skunked them actually so it wasn't an exciting game. But apparently when BYU gets to 100 points, they serve ice-cream after the game. So they got to 100 and the fans went crazy and all lined up outside after the game to get their cones. Fun times!
The next day was Sunday and we were planning on church - even figured out where it was and how to get there. But then I wasn't feeling well so we literally had a day of rest. And how nice for us that the only pharmacy in Waikiki was right behind our hotel. We did enjoy watching the final day of Olympics and the Closing Ceremonies - don't get to do that at home since we don't have TV.
On Monday we moved to our third and final hotel. Before going though, we perused the flea market thing that was beside our hotel and found souveniers for our little people back home. Rich is quite the barterer, especially since many of the vendors were Korean and he loved being able to speak to them in their language. They loved it too and gave him some deals! I, however, do not like to barter.
We were on the 21st floor of our last hotel. The thing I liked best about this one was the location - right across the street from the beach!
View from our balcony looking down. By the pool is where we all gather for breakfast.
From our balcony looking out over the Pacific Ocean and Waikiki Beach.
Our room.
So . . . apparently nine days after the full moon, the sting-rays come to Waikiki beach and hang around for three days. These pictures are taken during those three days, so the beach was really quite empty.
Rich out walking along the sea wall.
And it's me in the ocean! We were safe from sting-rays inside the sea wall.
Below our hotel, across from the beach was an ice-cream place. I was able to get coconut ice-cream, and then they hand mixed pineapple into it. It was one of the most delicious things you could eat after sitting on the hot beach! Mmmm!
Rich in the hotel pool.
Enjoying the warmth and the view.
On Tuesday we rented a BMW motorbike to cruise around the island in.
There are no helmet laws in Hawaii, but we were smart and wore them, even though they were these skull cap kinds. I prefer having my face covered. Rich was protected from the wind by the bike windshield, but I wasn't. I tried to duck down behind him in the windy times. And sometimes we'd turn a corner and it would be so windy I thought I was going to lose my glasses! This was our coolest day in Hawaii so we wore jeans and coats. It tried to rain for about 30 seconds. One thing I liked about our bike was that it had heated seats! I guess that's how you stay warm on a motorbike in the winter. I had mine turned up all the way!
It sure was pretty to cruise along the roads beside the beaches and ocean.
We rode around Diamond Head and up the east side of O'ahu to a town that started with a K - big surprise! I believe it was Kaneohe. Lovely place, beautiful homes and beaches and we found a delightful little restaurant for lunch.
We stopped at a banyan tree. These were fascinating! There was the main tree and then it would send down these roots from it's branches and when they reached the ground, they would grow in just like roots. They're actually called prop roots and help support the huge spreading branches.
We enjoyed learning about some of the amazing local sea life at the Waikiki Aquarium. So many unique and gorgeous fish - well, gorgeous for fish! My favourite was a bright orange fish with a perfect magenta square on each side of it. So simple yet eye catching!
When we left the aquarium, we couldn't undo the bike lock that locked the tire and prevented theft of the bike. Rich tried and tried and finally had to call the bike rental guy to come rescue us. But then, all of a sudden, it worked and we were able to leave! It was warm by now and was fun to cruise the streets of Waikiki on the bike.
Our adventure at this point in time was financial. My credit card hadn't been working for a few days and now Rich's wasn't working because the motorbike rental place took a deposit that they wouldn't refund for a few days, which put his card over its limit. Our debit cards just didn't work in Hawaii in retail outlets - all we could do with them was withdraw cash so that's what we had to do. (When we got home we found out that my card had been compromised and was cancelled because it was being used in a Walmart Pharmacy in New Jersey - good thing I had called and told them I'd be in Hawaii before we left, so these false charges alerted them and they shut down my card.)
For our last dinner in Hawaii, we decided to go back to our favourite place for the third time - The Cheesecake Factory. So we walked along the beach at sunset - and yeah, it was just as nice as it sounds!
A nice man was just standing there so we got him to take our picture. He told us he'd just lost his wife and I thought he meant that she'd died. But no - she was just missing, which is why he was hanging out in plain site on the street, willing to take pictures for needy tourists.
The Cheesecake Factory had this garden on the street in front of it where we all sat while waiting our turn. Usually it was over an hour wait, but it was so fun to sit and talk and visit with tourists from all over the world, and to watch the people walk past. When the couple to our left went in, a group of young men sat down. Next thing we know, young girls from all over were coming and asking for autographs and getting their pictures taken with them. So I asked the one beside me if they were famous people. He said they were - internet personalities actually, they do videos on YouTube. He was the nicest, friendliest young man, so we took a picture of them! They are Our Second Life or O2L. One of our daughters was impressed when we showed her the picture!!!
I must add here that once we got into the restaurant, I had the most beautiful (fruit and flower garnishes) and delicious virgin pina colada that I've ever had the pleasure of devouring. So good, so so good!!!
Our hotel at night looked like a Volcano! There was a mountain and big red light up the side, and the torches burning around the Tiki Restaurant there on the second level. Fun place!
For our last morning in Hawaii, Rich had a para-sailing trip at 8:00am.
We went out on that little boat behind us. Captain Kevin was our skipper and there were eight young Japanese girls with us too.
Rich was first to get harnessed and go up. He was on the longest possible rope length - 1200 feet.
When he started going out, all the Japanese girls screamed and giggled.
The boat started going faster at this point and I was trying to take pictures and not loose my balance in the "good" spot they put me in to take pictures!
Diamond Head, the Waikiki shoreline and a ship.
1200 feet of rope with Rich at the end.
As Rich was being pulled back in, Captain Kevin posed for a photo while pretending to sever the rope.
Our Japanese shipmates as we were heading back to shore. Boat rides sometimes make me queasy, but I did okay this time. However I didn't like the fast sharp corners when the boat felt like it was tipping over.
After this last adventure, we went back to our hotel and started to pack up. Our time in paradise was coming to an end, but I was very excited to see my chickadee's again! Our shuttle picked us up and took us to the airport.
Rich had a final meal in the airport but I had mine packed up to consume later on the plane. You can buy food on the plane, but only with a credit card - which we couldn't use any more . . . so yeah, planning ahead. The airport has lovely gardens in the center of it, and this restaurant actually had glass in their window.
Our flight left Honolulu at 3:35pm and there was no turbulence this time. Only took 5 hours heading back, and we had movies to watch this time. By the time we arrived in Vancouver and went through Customs and collected our baggage, it was about 1:30am. We wandered through the airport looking for the best location to be our bedroom for that night.
This bench was it! I was curled up on the two seats on the other side of Rich and we used the same bag covered in a beach towel for our pillow. I had my arms through my backpack and the red blanket kept me warm. It was about 2:30am before we got settled and our flight left at 6:00am, so we only got a couple hours of unrestful sleep. Did you know they clean the airport at night?
Here we are back in our closest airport and so tired! We waited for a shuttle to take us to our car, which was freezing cold. We didn't take our winter coats to Hawaii - they were in the trunk of the car. All I had to wear was a hoodie, my raincoat and mittens until we got to the car. Oh how I missed the warmth of O'ahu! We went out for breakfast and the first thing I ordered was hot chocolate! Then we drove home, collected Mackie from her big sister's house, bought groceries, and went home to see everyone else. I missed them!!! But it was wonderful to get away. The next morning after the kids left for school, Mackie climbed back into bed with me and we both slept for half the day. It takes awhile to recouperate from travelling, especially when you had such a comfy bed the night before!
Rich and I had a simply delightful time together. Loved Hawaii but love him more!!!
